Judge Magister
Elite guards and lawmakers, the Judge Magister is the ultimate law. They are feared for their ability to bring in lawbreakers easily. They wear unique armor as a badge of office. Abilities Badge of Office A judge magister’s official badge of office is a suit of masterwork armor, tailor-fitted for the judge magister. If at any time the judge magister stops being a judge magister, he is to turn in his badge of office or be hunted down. At each indicated levels (see below), the judge magister must turn in his badge of office to be upgraded. At 1st level, the judge magister’s badge of office is considered a scale mail. At 3rd level, the judge magister’s badge of office is upgraded to a half plate. And finally, at 5th level, the judge magister’s badge of office is upgraded to a full plate. A badge of office can be enchanted as normal and all enhancements are transferred while upgrading. Authority (Su) At 1st level, a judge magister serves a religious or legal code and has absolute authority (granted by a higher-ranking agent of that code) to enforce it. This means that if the judge magister catches criminals, he may judge them guilty (given sufficient proof) and order their execution, or do it himself if need be. Because the judge magister must act within the law, there is rarely any friction between him and established authorities other than disputes about jurisdiction and challenges from other forms of authority. (A religiously endorsed judge magister, for example, might come into conflict with secular governors who take exception to the execution of their subjects.) A judge magister may deputize others to aid him in his tasks, although he is responsible for their actions in his name. As part of a Diplomacy and Intimidate check regarding matters of the law and his authority, a judge magister may exert his authority to grant himself a +4 bonus on these checks. This ability negates any need to carry a badge or writ of office, and is mainly used to convince those unfamiliar with the judge magister of his legal powers. For example, a judge magister can use this ability to check an angry mob intent on lynching a jailed prisoner, or convince a stubborn mayor that interfering with the judge magister’s efforts is likely to anger the lord they both work for. Even against individuals who don’t acknowledge his code of laws (such as thieves or warriors from other lands), the judge magister’s fervor still grants these skill bonuses. He does not, however, gain these bonuses in situations where his code of laws would not apply or hold no bearing (like against monsters or savages). The GM ultimately adjudicates who the judge magister’s authority applies against. In addition, a judge magister’s knowledge of his code is magically flawless, as if he were mentally reviewing a perfect copy of the code. If the source of the code changes (such as a decree from the church’s high priest or a new law created by a king), he instantly knows it. This perfect knowledge means he immediately recognizes any misquoting of the law (deliberate or accidental), and many judge magisters consider it their duty to review the law book in remote settlements to make sure there are no errors in transcription or translation. A judge magister may always take 10 on Knowledge checks regarding the code, even when rushed or threatened. This ability replaces defend ally. Always Wary (Ex) At 2nd level, a judge magister is always ready for betrayal and subterfuge. Whenever he attempts a Sense Motive check to avoid being surprised by a foe using Bluff to conceal the attack, the judge magister can always act during the surprise round, regardless of the result of the check. In addition, he adds his Charisma modifier (in addition to his Dexterity modifier) to his initiative checks during any such encounter. This ability replaces Bravery. Determination (Ex) At 3rd level, the judge magister is a person of few words on the battlefield, but those words hold great power and authority. Once per day, he can use this ability to create one of the following effects as an immediate action. * Aggression: The judge magister may reroll an attack roll that he just made before the results of the roll are revealed. He must take the result of the reroll, even if it’s worse than the original roll. * Defense: When the judge magister would be hit by a melee or ranged attack, he may add a +4 insight bonus to his Armor Class against that attack, and if this makes the judge magister’s AC higher than the opponent’s attack roll, the attack misses. * Warning: When a judge magister’s ally within line of sight would be hit by a melee or ranged attack, he may call out a warning to that ally, and the attacker must reroll the attack and use the results of the second roll. The ally must be able to hear the judge magister and must not be helpless for this ability to have any effect. A judge magister can use this ability once more per day for every three knight levels after 3rd (at 6th, 9th, 12th, 15th, and 18th level); up to seven times per day at 18th level. This replaces Armor Training. Category:Archetypes